Just yesterday the Huffington Post gleefully announced that Bill Gates, the world’s richest man, with a net worth of $87.4 billion, is combining his vast resources with 20 or more other billionaires to fight…what else…climate change.

I may have misspoken when I said he was going to combine his “vast resources.” He’s not really. He and 20 or so other fat-cats have established the “Breakthrough Energy Ventures fund.”

Combined, these 20 wildly wealthy individuals will chip in a total of $1 billion, “to build companies that will help deliver the next generation of reliable, affordable, and emissions-free energy to the world,” Gates said. A bit of a paltry figure considering their cumulative wealth is in excess of $170 billion. But still, a billion dollars is nothing to sneeze at. Oh, and the initiative plans to invest in “green energy” over 20 years.

The HuffPo writes that, “The fund will focus its investments on projects relating to a number of clean energy issues such as carbon emission reduction and energy generation and storage.” Gates added that, “In addition to mitigating climate change, affordable clean energy will help fight poverty.”

How is “carbon emission reduction” going to “help fight poverty?” If I am battling to just stay alive, wondering where my next meal will come from – do I give a crap about “carbon emission reduction?” I think not. I would start a tire fire if I thought it might attract some food.

I honestly think these guys are so wealthy that they don’t know what to do with the money. They feel guil…